Bow Arm Morris Recliner

This is one of my trade mark chairs. I’ve made several of these over the years. This chair was made especially for the Texas Furniture Makers Show in 2006, where it took third place overall. The arms and back slats are steam bent from solid wood. The legs are made using the quadrilinear method. This allows the quarter sawnfigure to show all the way around the legs. This particular chair has been darkened using the ammonia fuming method. This finish required about 20 hours of fuming. The cushions are a coil spring, feather and foam construction. I’ve also attached a couple of pictures of other chairs with other finishes and built from other woods.

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25 comments so far

I really like this chair. Arts and Crafts style furniture is my favorite style as well. The color of the fumed oak is gorgeous. The color and the through tenons are details that make this piece unique.

Do you do the upholstery as well or do you outsource this?

Thanks for the post.

-- Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful- Joshua Marine

Thanks, Scott. I designed the cushion composition for the seat and back and have them made by MinuteMan upholstery in NC. I do the leather upholstery myself. I started out as a chair maker/restorer when I was a teenager. I have a rocking chair,bar stool, and a bench on my web site that is a sample of some of the chair cane jobs that I do.

These are beautiful, good proportion of wood to leather, strength and grace. Tthe base looks strong and supportive, the back and armrest is thin and elegant. It invites me to cozy up with a wool blanket and read Finewoodworking.

Beautiful chair, nice lines. You mentioned that you fumed the piece. Question. How do you know when the piece is “done”? I assume you test a few pieces of scrap wood but normally how long does it take to achieve that look. Once fumed then what? do you stain, or dye, or just add a finish wax or poly to protect. Do you have an availavle plan for your chairs? What are the dimensions of the jig you use to bend the arms? Sorry for all the questions but I would like to tackle something similar soongreat work!!!

Ok, Dude,Here goes. You’re right, you put some small cut offs in the ammonia “tent” and pull one out about every hour or so to check the progress. Usually the wood will reach it’s max darkness in about 24 hours. Some wood will fume darker than others, depending on the amount of tanic acid in the wood. After it’s fumed to your liking, then just seal it with your favorite finish. There are mucho articles on the web about fuming. Any wood that has tanic acid in it will darken. Red oak has tanic acid, but gets a slightly green hue to it. Sap wood doesn’t contain tanic acid and will not darken. Be sure you use a respirator,gloves, long sleeve shirt, and swim goggles when you use ammonia. It WILL burn your lungs and eyes and any cuts or scrapes you might have exposed. The radius on the arms is about 60” if I remember correctly. I use the same for the back slats, since anything tighter than that will cause a weak tenon. I don’t sell or give out plans. Find one you like and adjust the size to meet your needs.